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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Cover crop -- not grain -- before garlic

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  • From: "Kathryn Kerby" <kakerby AT aol.com>
  • To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Cover crop -- not grain -- before garlic
  • Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2013 09:20:17 -0800

The folks at Peaceful Valley Farm Supply have put together a fantastic Cover Crops Solution Chart; it’s the best I’ve ever seen.  Many different plants that can be used as cover crops down the vertical axis, many different issues/conditions/goals that are to be dealt with along the horizontal axis.  The plants are grouped very generally by type, ie, “cool season annual” versus “warm season annual”.  They break out legumes within those groupings, so stuff like clovers and vetches are together, rather than mixed in with non-legumes.  While I don’t recall wireworm being one of the conditions listed, it would be relatively easy to look at the other goals you have for that cover crop, then which crops would work, then simply eliminate the grasses/grains from the list of candidates.  Or maybe they’ve added wireworm as a problem since I last looked.

 

I’m having some issues with my internet connection this morning so I can’t do a search right this minute on their website, to provide the link.  But their website is www.groworganic.com and is relatively user-friendly.  Their print catalogs also have a tremendous amount of information, including that two-page cover crops chart along with an entire section on cover crops.  It’s one of the better organized catalogs that I get and I usually hang onto that one as a reference each year.  Their phone staff is also very friendly and knowledgeable, and they have always been happy to discuss this-vs-that variety or option with me whenever I’ve called.  The one thing that isn’t always obvious in the print catalog is that they have a gardeners branch and a bulk buyer/commercial farmer branch.  So if it comes to buying seed, make sure you’re talking to the bulk folks for better pricing.  But calling with questions about cover crops would probably get you in the right department right away.

Kathryn Kerby

Frogchorusfarm.com

Snohomish, WA

 


From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Pam Twin Oaks
Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2013 12:22 PM
To: Market Farming
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Cover crop -- not grain -- before garlic

 

Dorene,

How about brassicas of some sort, or brassicas alterrnating with buckwheat? There are some mustards that deter some pests. I don't know much about it because we avoid brassica cover crops because we grow so many brassica food crops and have harlequin bugs. There are forage radishes that some people use as cover crops. The SARE publication that Richard Robinson linked to has a wealth of free information on cover crops.

Sorry to hear about the wireworms!

Pam


--
Pam Dawling
 
Author of Sustainable Market Farming, Intensive Vegetable Production on a Few Acres
http://sustainablemarketfarming.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SustainableMarketFarming
http://www.newsociety.com/Books/S/Sustainable-Market-Farming




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